Brave workers are scaling the heady heights of the Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil to inspect lightning strike damage.

The famed statue, which overlooks Guanabara bay in Rio de Janeiro, is being examined after two fingers and the head were chipped during recent lightning storms.

Officials say they'll place more lightning rods on the statue in an effort to prevent future damage but, in the meantime, workers with nerves of steel are carrying out the first examinations on the 125ft structure.

The famed statue of Jesus Christ is 98ft tall, not including its 26ft pedestal, and its arms stretch 92ft wide. It weighs 635 tonnes and is located at the peak of the 2,300ft Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park overlooking the city.

A symbol of Brazilian Christianity, the statue has become an icon for Rio de Janeiro and Brazil and a tourist must-visit.

It is made of reinforced concrete and soapstone, and was constructed between 1922 and 1931.